Why Do Skilled Immigrants Struggle in the Labor Market? A Field Experiment with Thirteen Thousand Resumes

Philip Oreopoulos

American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 2011, vol. 3, issue 4, 148-71

Abstract: Thousands of randomly manipulated resumes were sent in response to online job postings in Toronto to investigate why immigrants, allowed in based on skill, struggle in the labor market. The study finds substantial discrimination across a variety of occupations towards applicants with foreign experience or those with Indian, Pakistani, Chinese, and Greek names compared with English names. Listing language fluency, multinational firm experience, education from highly selective schools, or active extracurricular activities had no diminishing effect. Recruiters justify this behavior based on language skill concerns but fail to fully account for offsetting features when listed. (JEL J15, J24, J61)

JEL-codes: J15 J24 J61 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
Note: DOI: 10.1257/pol.3.4.148
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (281)

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